The Saints have enjoyed their trips to Florida, and it's only gotten more comfortable.
After a 38-3 blowout of the Bucs in 2020, the Saints went to Jacksonville for a 38-3 demolition of the Packers in Week 1.
This week, the offense struggled, the defense did not, battering Tom Brady for two interceptions and his first shutout in 15 years as the Saints won 9-0 to keep their postseason hopes alive.
With all that mind, here are my three quick takeaways from yet another big-time Saints performance in the Sunshine State.
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1. A TITLE-CALIBER DEFENSE HAS ENTERED THE CHAT
The 2021 Saints were always going to need a dominant defense to have a chance at a successful season. Whether due to injuries or other issues, that group just hadn't lived up to the billing often enough through 14 weeks.
But when the Saints needed it most, the defense delivered.
Marshon Lattimore covered like glue. Cam Jordan and Marcus Davenport bullied and battered Tom Brady, and the Saints defense stifled the high-powered Bucs to a level that a scuffling Saints offense was a minor subplot to the larger picture.
And sure, there was a Saints-like dearth of wide receiver talent with Antonio Brown suspended and Mike Evans and Chris Godwin going down with injuries in the first half. Leonard Fournette joined the parade of injured Bucs in the second half.
Regardless, the defensive energy was there from the start. It never wavered. The hits came fast and hard. Fournette piled up catches, but his team hardly even sniffed the red zone. Jordan and Lattimore combined to finally force a turnover in the third quarter to end the Bucs' most effective drive. CJ Gardner-Johnson added an interception in the 4th quarter, his second of the season off Brady.
It was a performance that should lead even the most cynical of Saints fans to an oasis of "so you're telling me there's a chance?"
Because, yes, if the defensive group plays like it did (and always seems to) in Tampa, the 2021 Saints can beat anybody.
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2. TAYSOM HILL DID JUUUUUUUUUST ENOUGH
Taysom Hill came out firing. He hit Marquez Callaway on a pair of deep balls that set up two field goals and pinned the Saints to a 6-0 lead that would've stood up even without Brett Maher's insurance kick in the 4th quarter.
But things came a bit unraveled after those first two drives. Hill seemed to throw as many balls behind receivers as he threw to them en route to a line of 13 of 27 passing for 154 yards. There were few designed runs. There were even fewer scrambles.
The gripe could be with the play-calling, which seemed a bit too predictable for the majority of the second and third quarters. But I won't be heaping criticism on the Pete Carmichael offense. There were open receivers. The protection wasn't atrocious despite backups playing in place of Terron Armstead, Ryan Ramczyk and Andrus Peat.
New Orleans didn't log a first down the entire third quarter. They finally got things untracked with some designed rollouts and QB runs on a drive that felt like it put the game away midway through the 4th quarter, despite the seemingly narrow 9-point margin. With the defense balling like it was, two scores was more than enough.
But the fact remains: Taysom simply has to be better for this team to not only charge the rest of the way into the playoffs, but also to be successful once it gets there.
That said, for the second consecutive week he did successfully complete a pivotal part of his job: He didn't turn the ball over, although he came dangerously close after driving into field goal range in the 4th quarter. Andrew Adams whiffed on a ball that was gift-wrapped for him, and the Saints took advantage for a 9-0 that felt more like 19. Had that momentum swing gone the other way, all it would have taken was one masterful drive from Brady to turn a defensive masterpiece into a massive letdown.
In order to win games on defense, the first step is to put a crooked number on the scoreboard (and it can be in multiples of 3). The second step is to play turnover-free on offense and control field position. The closing step, in most cases, is the defense slamming the door with takeaways of its own as the opponent takes more and more risks. Seriously, did it feel like the Bucs were ever going to score in that game without some help?
For yet another week the Saints offense was the complementary piece. It's helped to stack two wins in a row. Survive and advance, and hopefully improve. One way or another, the Saints found a way, and that's a good thing.
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3. THE PLAYOFF HOPES ARE VERY REAL
The Saints were one of five teams that entered Week 15 sitting at 6-7 and with one playoff spot to split between them.
There was no reason to feel like the Saints' chances were dead in the water, but there was one massive hurdle to clear. It was always possible that 9-8 could've been enough to get it done, but a 10-7 finish felt like the only confident route to secure a berth.
With the Bucs standing squarely in the way of that path to 10-7, it was fair not to get too emotionally invested. This team has burned you too many times. I get it.
But at 7-7 with winnable games remaining against the 7-7 Dolphins, 5-9 Panthers and 6-8 Falcons, that path is as manageable as ever.
It's the year that everything has gone wrong. But could it end in the postseason? If it does, it'll be another Sunday Night Football beatdown in Tampa that set the stage.
And hey, if nothing else, the Saints made sure they didn't have to watch the Bucs celebrate its first NFC South title since 2007 while they were in attendance. New Orleans' win retains the slim glimmer of a chance at a 5th-straight division title, but it'd require the Bucs to finish 0-3 and the Saints to win out.
It ain't over til it's over. And this Saints season is definitively not over. Not by a long shot.